[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 98 (Friday, June 26, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1580-E1581]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. JAMES R. LANGEVIN

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 24, 2009

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration of the bill (H.R. 2647) to 
     authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2010 for military 
     activities of the Department of Defense; to prescribe 
     military personnel strengths for fiscal year 2010, and for 
     other purposes:

  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the fiscal year 2010 
National Defense Authorization Act, and I want to thank my good friend 
Chairman Skelton for his leadership in crafting an excellent bill.
  This bill gives not only gives our service men and women the tools 
they need to keep our nation safe, but it also makes valuable 
investments in programs and projects that support our military 
families, increase oversight of our war efforts and further critical 
non-proliferation efforts. It recognizes the sacrifices made not only 
by our troops, but by their families as well, providing a 3.4 percent 
pay raise, expanded TRICARE coverage, and $1.95 billion for military 
family housing. This measure will increase oversight and accountability 
by requiring the President to report on U.S. goals in Afghanistan and 
Pakistan and our redeployment from Iraq. It also adds $2.5 billion to 
programs designed to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons, one of 
the most urgent threats the world faces today. Finally, the bill 
strengthens our nation's missile defense capabilities, by increasing 
funding for systems vital to protect against real threats while 
balancing technology development to face the needs of tomorrow.
  I am particularly pleased with the steps taken in this bill to ensure 
that contractor waste, fraud and abuse is brought to an end and that we 
have an efficient and fair system for meeting critical defense needs. 
During the Armed Services Committee's mark-up, I offered an amendment, 
which was adopted by voice vote, to alter the OMB Circular A-76 process 
for determining which activities are inherently governmental functions 
and vital to our national defense. My amendment will ensure the A-76 
process is fair for our government workforce and provide the Obama 
Administration a chance to address past failures of the A-76 process.
  This legislation also addresses the need to enhance our military's 
cybersecurity capabilities. Cyberspace is a growing component of the 
modern battlefield, and we must ensure our forces are prepared for the 
wars of tomorrow. I applaud the efforts of the Secretary of Defense and 
the services to meet the growing threat of cyberattacks. I am 
concerned, however, that individuals with critical cyber skills are not 
making a career in the uniformed services. We need to do everything in 
our power to recruit and retain talented and experienced individuals, 
and that is why I offered an amendment during committee consideration 
that requires the Secretary of Defense to submit to Congress a report 
assessing the challenges to retention and professional development of 
uniformed and civilian cyber operators. I am pleased that this 
requirement is now included in the bill before us today. This report 
will help define numbers of personnel, recruitment and retention 
incentives, policy impediments, and methods to improve interagency and 
academic outreach to individuals with critical cyber skills.
  Finally, I also want to give praise to Secretary Gates, Chairman 
Skelton and Chairwoman Tauscher for working with our military 
commanders to shape a budget that protects the U.S. and our allies from 
real ballistic missile threats. The bill provides $9.3 billion for 
missile defense, supporting critical programs that are tested and 
operational and eliminating

[[Page E1581]]

unnecessary and unproven programs that waste taxpayer dollars.
  The U.S. Intelligence Community estimates that the most significant 
ballistic missile threat to U.S. interests, deployed forces, and our 
allies comes from short- and medium-range ballistic missiles that 
represent 99% of the total number of ballistic missiles other than 
those held by the United States, NATO nations, Russia, and China. H.R. 
2647 supports the President's request to increase funding by $900 
million for systems that counter this threat, such as the Aegis BMD 
system and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system.
  Looking forward, this bill also provides $1 billion to support the 
requests of President Obama, Secretary Gates, and the Chairman of the 
Joint Chiefs of Staff to support the development and operation of 30 
Ground-based Midcourse Defense interceptors, designed to guard against 
future emerging threats. According to senior defense officials, these 
30 interceptors are more than what is necessary to deal with any long-
range threat from a rogue state in the near and mid-term. This will 
ensure our nation is able to face the threats of today and tomorrow.
  Mr. Chair, this bill admirably balances critical national security 
needs with realistic budget considerations, and I am proud to support 
it. Again, I thank Chairman Skelton for his leadership and urge my 
colleagues to vote for this important legislation.

                          ____________________